Humidifiers



W. W. MARTIN HUMIDIFIERS Sept. 24, 1963 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Aug. 31, 1961 INVENTOR.

WARNER W. MARTIN ATTORNEYS Sept. 24, 1963 w.w. MARTIN HUMIDIFIERS 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Aug. 31, 1961 FIG-5 FIG-2 lmpl IIHI INVENTOR. WARNER w. MARTIN ATTORNE YS United States Patent Ohio Filed Aug. 31, 1961, Ser. No. 135,301 Claims. (Cl. 126-113) This invention relates to humidifiers and more particularly to humidifiers for use with air heating systems.

In most domestic heating systems a relatively dry air is produced, and a humidifier device is often placed in the heating device or in an air :duct leading therefrom. Many of these humidifiers include a reservoir and a Water level control system which continuously maintains an operating water level in the reservoir. The heated or war-med air circulates over the surface of the Water with a consequent increase in the humidity thereof. In order to increase the amount of moisture which is added to the air, some humidifiers mount a number of absorbent evaporator plates on the device in a manner to be partially submerged in the reservoir. Through a process of capillary action, the plate becomes thoroughly saturated thereby increasing the surface area .over which the air is passed to absorb moisture.

One object of the present invention is to provide an improved humidifier of the above type for use in a domestic hot air furnace or the like.

Another object of this invention is to provide a humidifier having a mounting arrangement for the evaporator plates which is independent of the reservoir and which permits maximum circulation of air over and around the evaporator plates.

A further object of this invention resides in the provision of an improved humidifier reservoir level control which automatically compensates for variation in the water line pressure without requiring manual adjustment.

A still further object of this invention is the provision of a humidifier :device having one or more of the above features which is constructed as a unit and readily installed in and removed from a hot air furnace or the like.

An additional object of this invention is to construct a humidifier unit in a single but reliable and durable manner which :is capable of interim disassembly for cleaning purposes by a relatively unskilled person.

Additional objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following description, the accompanying drawings and the appended claims.

In the drawing:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of one complete humidifier assembly;

FIG. 2 is a vertical section view of the forward portion of the humidifier assembly showing the valve in the closed position;

FIG. 3 is a view similar to FIG. 4 showing the valve in the open position;

FIG. 4 is a vertical section view taken in the direction of arrows essentially :on the line 44 of FIG. 2;

FIG. 5 is a plan view of the forward end portion of the reservoir pan showing the construction details thereof;

FIG. 6 is a side view, partially in section, of the humidi tier assembly mounted in a vertical wall of a hot air furnace or the like; and

FIG. 7 is a vertical section view taken in the direction of arrows essentially on the line 77 of FIG. 6.

Referring to the drawings, which illustrate a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the humidifier assembly 10 in FIG. .1 has -a body member 11 which may be mounted in a hot air furnace or similar heating device producing relatively dry air. The assembly 10 includes a reservoir pan 12, which normally contains a predetermined volume of water, and a cantilever rack 15 from which a plurality of T-shaped evaporator plates 16 are suspended above the reservoir pan 12 in a position Wherein lower portions thereof are partially submerged in the water. These plates 16 are constructed of a highly absorbent materiaLfor example a composition of calcium silicate and asbestos, which con-ducts the water through a process of capillary action to substantially every point therein. Heated air passing around and over the evaporator plates 16 tends to evaporate the moisture on or near the surface thereof with a consequent increase in humidity of the air. A Window or opening 17 may be provided on body member 11 so that the condition of plates 16, among other things, can be readily determined. This opening is preferably normally closed so that air will not flow therethrough.

The volume of water is automatically maintained Within a predetermined range by a water level control system which is illustrated in FIGS. 2-5. The valve body 20 having a passageway 21 therethrough is threadedly secured to the body member 11 by the nut 22. As shown in FIG. 1, a water supply line 25 is connected to the valve body 20 and communicates with passageway 21 through saddle valve 26 and conduit 27, the latter being secured to the valve body 2th by the female connection 28. A restriction 29 in the passageway 21 terminates in an orifice 30 having a cooperating valve member 33 for controlling the flow of fluid therefrom and thus reduces the total pressure force of the water discharged from the orifice 30.

The valve member 33 is formed of a comparatively soft, resilient, and durable material, erg, neoprene rubber, and is positioned on the uppermost portion of the extension 35 which is an integral portion of the pan 12 located at the forward end thereof. The braces or struts 36 are formed integrally with and rigidly support the extension 35. A chamber 40 is formed between the extension 35 and the central portion of the pan end Wall 41, and this chamber lies below valve 30 and communicates through clearances 42 with the main chamber 44 of the reservoir pan 12.

Upwardly projecting arms 45 formed integrally on each side of the forward end of the pan 12 have a pivot pin or rod extending therebetween which, as shown in FIG. 4, engages the hook shaped support members 51 on the body member 11 thereby permitting the reservoir pan 12 to be pivoted about the axis of the rod 50. When the reservoir pan r12 is in the horizontal position, as shown in FIG. 2, the valve member '33 engages the orifice 30 thereby prohibiting 'Water flow therefrom. A spring member 52 is interposed between the body member 11 and the end wall 44) of the reservoir pan and constantly urges the pan 12 toward a tilted position, as shown in FIG. 3, wherein the valve member 33 is spaced from the orifice 30 and permits water to flow therefrom. It will also be noted that the valve body 20 includes an integral shroud portion 55 which surrounds the valve member 33 and intercepts any side spray caused by the impingement of Water on valve member 33.

The cantilever rack 15 has its forward end supported by the hook member 57 (which extends through a suitable -complementary aperture in the rack 15, see FIG. 2) and the pivot rod 59 in a manner shown in FIG. 6 wherein the rack 15 is disposed horizontally above the reservoir pan 12 without support therefrom. A spacer sleeve 58, which surrounds pivot rod 50, insures that the rack 15 will be properly centered between the arms 45 and the support members 51 so that the evaporator plates 16 will be vertically supported by the rack 15 in a position above but not in contact with the reservoir pan 12. Each of the plates 16 has a rectangular aperture 60 in the central portion thereof, as best shown in FIG. 7, through which the rack 15 projects. A downwardly extending projection 61 in each aperture 60 engages the spaced rectangular shaped slots 62 in the rack 15 thereby insuring that each evaporator plate 16 will be spaced from the adiacent plates.

The rack 15 and the plates 16 can be readily removed from the humidifier assembly 19 by merely rotating the rear end of rack 15 in a counterclockwise direction, as viewed in FIG. 6, until the forward end thereof no longer engages the member 57. The old evaporator plates can then be removed from rack 15 by raising them slightly to disengage the project-ions 61 from the slots 62 and then sliding them from the rack 15, and then new plates are installed by reversing this procedure. Subsequent to the removal of the rack 15 and the evaporator plate 16, the reservoir pan 12 can be removed by raising the forward end thereof and moving the pivot rod 56 upwardly until it is disengaged from the support unembers 51.

As shown in FIG. 6, the body member 11 is secured to the vertical wall 65 of a hot air furnace. The screws 66 project through the keyhole openings 67 in the body member 11 and into the wall 65 of the furnace thereby securely fastening the humidifier assembly 1% to the furnace. The entire assembly can be readily removed by merely loosening the screws 66 and moving the body member 11 upwardly so that the larger portion of the keyhole openings 67 will clear the heads of the screws. The assembly 10 may be then pulled horizontally from the furnace. It should now be evident that the entire assembly 10 can be easily removed by the average person from the furnace and disassembled for cleaning. Further, body member 11 with attached rack 15, evaporator plate 16, and reservoir pan 12 is capable of being removed from the furnace and disassembled in the manner described above without the use of special tools or equipment.

An overflow lip '70 is formed in the end wall 40 and since its height is less than that of the other side walls of the pan 1% water will overflow the lip 70 rather than at any other place in the reservoir pan 12. A trough '71 is formed in the member 11 below the overflow lip 76* and will catch any such overflow, and a port 72 is suitably disposed in the trough '71 to drain any water which collects therein to a position exterior of the furnace. The lip 7 ti, trough 71, and port 72 are provided as a precautionary measure and are not essential to normal operation. They merely provide a safety means so that if the proper maintenance of the assembly is neglected, overflowing Water will not adversely afiect the furnace.

In operation, assuming the humidifier assembly 10 to be properly installed in a furnace and that the saddle valve 26 is so positioned to permit the water from line 25 to flow through the conduit 27 to the passageway 21 in the valve body 20, the water level control system will raise the water level in the reservoir pan 12 to the operating or predetermined level. More specifically, when the water in the pan 12 is below the predetermined level, the bias of spring 52 will rotate the reservoir pan 12 to the tilted position as shown in FIG. 3, wherein the valve member 33 is spaced from the orifice 30 and water flows into the chamber 40, through clearance spaces 42, to the main chamber 44 of the reservoir pan 12. As the water reaches its predetermined level, the weight of the water in the pan 12 overcomes the bias of spring 52 and rotates the pan 12 to the horizontal position wherein the valve member 33 closes the orifice 30 and blocks further water flow therefrom.

Through a process of capillary action, the plates 16 absorb water from the reservoir pan 12 until each is completely saturated. The warmed or heated air of the furnace passes over and around these water saturated plates 16 and evaporates the moisture on or near the surfaces thereof with a consequent increase in the moisture content of the air. When the water level in the pan 12 drops below the predetermined level, the spring 52 again are the only variables afiecting the pivotal movements of this pan 12 since the evaporator plates 16 are at all times spaced from the pan.

The degree to which the present invention adds mois ture to the air may be varied by changing the number of evaporator plates 16 on the ra k 15 thereby changing the surface area over which the heated air will pass.

While the form of apparatus herein described constitutes a preferred embodiment of the invention, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the precise form of apparatus, and that changes may be made therein without departing from the scope of the invention which is defined in the appended claims.

Reference is made to my application S.N. 135,300, filed August 31, 1961, now Patent No. 3,073,297, issued January 15, 1963, and assigned to the same assignee as the present application.

What is claimed is:

l. A humidifier assembly for an air heating device or the like comprising, a body member adapted to be secured to a wall of said air conditioning device, a reservoir pan having upwardly extending arm means on the forward end thereof, support means projecting from said body member, pivot means interposed between said arm means and said support means to mount said reservoir pan on said support member for rotation between a first position and a second position, a valve body mounted on said member below said pivot means and having a fluid passageway therethrough terminating in an orifice at one end, means for connecting the other end of said passageway to a source of water, a valve member mounted for movement by the forward end of said reservoir pan to engage said orifice and prevent flow therefrom when said pan is in said first position and to retract from said orifice thereby permitting fluid to flow therethrough and into said pan when said pan is in said second position, and biasing means interposed between said pan and said body memher and having a bias which urges said pan toward said second position and which is overcome when a predetermined volume of water is in said pan thereby permitting said pan to be moved to said first position.

2. A humidifier assembly for an air heating device or posed valve body operably secured to said body member below said rod and having a passageway therethrough, said passageway having an orifice at one end thereof disposed above the forward end of said reservoir pan, means for connecting the other end of said passageway to a source of water, a valve member mounted on said reservoir pan in position to engage said orifice when said pan is in said first position thereby prohibiting fluid flow from said orifice and to be spaced from said orifice when said pan is in said second position thereby permitting fluid flow from said orifice, and spring means interposed between said pan and said body member and having a bias which urges said pan toward said second position and g which is overcome when a predetermined volume of water is in said pan thereby permitting said pan to be moved to said first position.

3. A humidifier assembly for a hot air furnace or the like comprising, a body member adapted to be secured removably to a vertical wall of said furnace, a reservoir pan supported in a cantilever manner by said body member, an upwardly extending arm on each side of the forward end of said pan, support means on said body member, pivot pin means interconnecting said arms and said support means for rotation of said pan between a horizontal and tilted position, a horizontally disposed valve body operably mounted in said body member below said pivot pin means having a passageway therethrough, said passageway having an orifice at one end thereof, means for connecting the other end of said passageway to a source of water, a valve element mounted on the forward end of said pan in position to engage said orifice when said pan is in said horizontal position thereby prohibiting water to flow therefrom and to be spaced from said orifice when said pan is in said tilted position thereby permitting Water to flow therefrom into said pan, and spring means interposed between said pan and said body member and having a bias which urges said pan toward said tilted position and which is overcome when a predetermined volume of water is in said pan thereby permitting said pan to be moved to said horizontal position.

4. A humidifier assembly for an .air heating device or the like, comprising, a body member adapted to be removably secured to a wall of said air heating device, a reservoir pan having upwardly extending arms on its forward end, hook means projecting from said member, pivot pin means operably interposed between said arms and said hook means to support said reservoir pan for pivotal movement on said member between a substantially horizontal position and .a tilted position, a valve body mounted on said body member below said pin means and having a passageway therethrough, said passageway having an orifice at one end thereof, means for connecting the other end of said passageway to a source of water, a valve member mounted on the forward end of said pan in position to engage said orifice and prevent flow therefrom when said pan is in said horizontal position and to be separated from said orifice thereby permitting fluid to flow therefrom when said pan is in said tilted position, spring means interposed between said pan and said body member and having a bias which urges said pan toward said tilted position and which is overcome when a predetermined volume of water is in said pan thereby permitting said pan to be moved to said horizontal position, a cantilever rack horizontally mounted on said support in a manner when said pan contains said predetermined amount of water.

5. A humidifier assembly for increasing the moisture content of the air flowing through an air conditioning device or the like comprising, a body member adapted to be mounted on the air conditioning device, a reservoir pan, means mounting said reservoir pan on said body member for movement between first and second positions in re sponse to a drop in water level in said pan below a predetermined level, means urging said reservoir pan toward said first position, water level control means connected to a source of pressure of water, means interconnecting said water level control means and said reservoir pan so that when said reservoir pan is in said first position said control means blocks the flow of water into said reservoir pan and when said reservoir pan is in said second position water is allowed to fiow into said pan until the level therein reaches said predetermined level, horizontally extending hook means on the inside of said body member, a removable support rack constructed at one end thereof for removable engagement with said hook means so that said one end of said rack is held against upward movement relative to said hook means, a horizontal support member on said body member spaced horizontally from said hook means for engaging the under side of said rack near said one end and cooperating with said hook means to-support said rack in a cantilever manner horizontally and centrally above said pan, and a plurality of evaporator plates each having a central aperture therein through which said rack extends for mounting said plates in spaced relation to said pan and to each other in position to be partially submerged when said pan contains said predetermined level of water so that said plates do not affect said pivotal movement of said pan.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,706,903 Smith Mar. 26, 1929 2,831,477 Perlman Apr. 22, 1958 2,870,762 Skerritt Jan. 27, 1959 2,934,058 Redner Apr. 26, 1960 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION Patent No 3, 104,660 September 24, 1963 Warner W, Martin It is hereby certified that err ent requiring correction and that th corrected below.

or appears in the above numbered pate said Letters Patent should read as Column 4, line 29 for "heating" read conditioning line 36, for "support" read body Signed and sealed this 28th day of April 1964.

(SEAL) Attest: ERNEST W. SWIDER EDWARD J. BRENNER Attesting Officer Commissioner of Patents 

1. A HUMIDIFIER ASSEMBLY FOR AN AIR HEATING DEVICE OR THE LIKE COMPRISING, A BODY MEMBER ADAPTED TO BE SECURED TO A WALL OF SAID AIR CONDITIONING DEVICE, A RESERVOIR PAN HAVING UPWARDLY EXTENDING ARM MEANS ON THE FORWARD END THEREOF, SUPPORT MEANS PROJECTING FROM SAID BODY MEMBER, PIVOT MEANS INTERPOSED BETWEEN SAID ARM MEANS AND SAID SUPPORT MEANS TO MOUNT SAID RESERVOIR PAN ON SAID SUPPORT MEMBER FOR ROTATION BETWEEN A FIRST POSITION AND A SECOND POSITION, A VALVE BODY MOUNTED ON SAID MEMBER BELOW SAID PIVOT MEANS AND HAVING A FLUID PASSAGEWAY THERETHROUGH TERMINATING IN AN ORIFICE AT ONE END, MEANS FOR CONNECTING THE OTHER END OF SAID PASSAGEWAY TO A SOURCE OF WATER, A VALVE MEMBER MOUNTED FOR MOVEMENT BY THE FORWARD END OF SAID RESERVOIR PAN TO ENGAGE SAID ORIFICE AND PREVENT FLOW THEREFROM WHEN SAID PAN IS IN SAID FIRST POSITION AND TO RETRACT FROM SAID ORIFICE THEREBY PERMITTING FLUID TO FLOW THERETHROUGH AND INTO SAID PAN WHEN SAID PAN IS IN SAID SECOND POSITION, AND BIASING MEANS INTERPOSED BETWEEN SAID PAN AND SAID BODY MEMBER AND HAVING A BIAS WHICH URGES SAID PAN TOWARD SAID SECOND POSITION AND WHICH IS OVERCOME WHEN A PREDETERMINED VOLUME OF WATER IS IN SAID PAN THEREBY PERMITTING SAID PAN TO BE MOVED TO SAID FIRST POSITION. 